here they are:
"Alabaster" by The Wood Brothers: When The Wood Brothers go for more of a slick, soulful groove than they do for the "jam band" stuff they've become known for, they seem to be most successful. The funky and surprisingly catchy "Happiness Jones" from last year proved this. During the last few weeks of the 2010's, The Wood Brothers prove their worth in funkiness once again with "Alabaster". "Alabaster", in this case, refers to a town in Alabama, and when the Woods claim that the subject of their song "won't be going back to Alabaster", they mean that she won't be going back to a place where oppression of sexual rights and oppression of women's rights run rampant. I think it's safe to say that no one wants to go back to Alabaster!
"NYE" by Joseph: "NYE", in this case, is pronounced "en-why-ee", not as "Nye" like Bill the Science Guy. It stands for "New Year's Eve" and serves as a coming of age song centering around the disappointment the lead singer feels about said holiday. Frustration is expressed that the person she is with is just using it as an excuse to get drunk (as she might be as well) and that she really doesn't feel older than she was before. The disillusionment and deconstruction of a beloved holiday. Is this really what we need to close out the 2010's?! Perhaps it is, if only to give us a wake-up call to move ourselves forward into the next decade.
"Unchained" by Devon Gilfillian: Neo-soul extraordinaire Devon Gilfillian made a big splash on adult alt radio through spring and summer of this year with the super-catchy "Get Out And Get It". The aching ballad, "Even Though It Hurts", was slated to be his next single, but unfortunately, it tanked. Thankfully, "Unchained" seems to be working in Devon's favor so far, having already hit 16 radio stations within its first week on the air! Perhaps this is because of just what a powerful song "Unchained" is. The song seems to be a cry for justice, perhaps both in a romantic way and a racial way, but whichever subject it's supposed to represent, it retains its strength! Mixing soul, hip-hop, and rock into a potent fabric, "Unchained" begs for freedom during a time when many souls feel chained and broken!
Showing posts with label Joseph. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Joseph. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 13, 2019
Wednesday, July 17, 2019
New songs for July 17th 2019
here they are:
"Fighter" by Joseph: The somewhat ironically named all-girl trio, Joseph, graced adult alt radio in 2016 and 2017 with their harmonious, bittersweet brand of indie-folk with songs like "White Flag" and "S.O.S. (Overboard)". The success must have paid off well for the three of them because summer 2019 marks their return to adult alt radio with "Fighter". The song is a bit of a departure from the acoustic guitar driven sound of their previous songs, as it doesn't seem to feature guitar much at all. However, the mood of "Fighter" is pure Joseph. Like their biggest hit to date, "White Flag", "Fighter" is all about never giving up. It touches on a more personal level than "White Flag" did, though. "Fighter" is actually a song that almost didn't even come into existence due to personal strife within the band, but Natalie, Allison, and Megan took that tension, made it into a song, and as a result, have landed the biggest new adult alt radio hit of the week! Way to go, girls!
"Heat of the Summer" by Young the Giant: In the mood for a summer song to make a splash on alt and adult alt radio?! Then wait no more! Young the Giant might just have what you're looking for with "Heat of the Summer". The song is actually a clever mix of the traditional fun summer song and the more contemporary type of "summer boredom" song. Lead singer, Sameer Gadhia, expresses his boredom with summer during the verses, which are accompanied by sparse bass sounds, and the richer, guitar laden sounds of the chorus complement its more joyful lyrics quite nicely.
"Rylan" by The National: Who is Rylan? Furthermore, what kind of a NAME is Rylan?! I've heard of (and met) people named Ryan, but adding an "L" into the middle of their names just seems odd. Anyway, as to the question of who Rylan is, it's a bit of a mystery. From the context of the song, he seems to be a neglected, sad child who rarely speaks. Beneath Rylan's quiet lies a troubled boy, as Matt Berninger switches between saying that he "reminds him of everyone" during the first part of the song, to saying that "there's a little bit of hell in everyone" towards the end of it. "Everyone", to Matt Berninger, is flawed in some way. Rylan, therefore, reminds Matt of just how imperfect the human race truly is. The National have often talked about alienation in their music, but rarely at a level that cuts as deep as this one does.
"See You Through My Eyes" by The Head and The Heart: Although The Head and The Heart's previous hit, "Missed Connection", was a significant departure from the folk-rock sound they started out with, it ended up becoming one of the biggest hits of the first half of 2019. We have now arrived at the second half of the year, and The Head and The Heart's move from folk-rock to soft alt-pop still hasn't waned with their latest song, "See You Through My Eyes", which looks poised to become one of the year's biggest hits as well. Musically, it's pretty much the major key version of "Missed Connection". Lyrically, it touches on more positive themes as well, focusing primarily on learning to love yourself.
"Strangers" by City and Colour: If you first found out about City and Colour through their 2009 folk-rock song, "Sleeping Sickness", then you might be in for a surprise to learn that lead singer Dallas Green's previous band was a hard-edged emo band called Alexisonfire. C & C's latest song, "Strangers", seems to be an attempt at combining the sweetness and harmonies of City and Colour with the chord progressions and energy of Alexisonfire. The song has a sound that is both sweet and moody, probably the moodiest that C & C have recorded so far. Its title, "Strangers", gives it an air of mystery to match its moodiness. As for the lyrics ("we are strangers in this land with so much left to discover"), they almost make the song seem vulnerable. Any way you look at it, this song is packed full of emotion!
"Wasted Youth" by Jenny Lewis: According to the YouTube comments on this song, I'm not the only one who thought of Carole King when I first heard this song on my local radio station, KCSN, a few weeks ago. Jenny has emulated quite a few of the women who have helped to shape rock and alternative music, from Joni Mitchell to Patti Smith, but I have not heard her try to take on Carole's style yet. Carole has an almost nostalgic, childlike quality to her music, something that Jenny offers somewhat on the surface, often interspersed with world weary, sarcastic lyrics underneath. There is no sarcasm in "Wasted Youth", though. If anything, the song offers up bittersweet truths that lament her own drug addictions and deaths that have occurred in her family. The song is basically "It's Too Late" for millennials. Something inside has indeed died within Jenny, and she makes no attempts to hide or fake it either!
"Fighter" by Joseph: The somewhat ironically named all-girl trio, Joseph, graced adult alt radio in 2016 and 2017 with their harmonious, bittersweet brand of indie-folk with songs like "White Flag" and "S.O.S. (Overboard)". The success must have paid off well for the three of them because summer 2019 marks their return to adult alt radio with "Fighter". The song is a bit of a departure from the acoustic guitar driven sound of their previous songs, as it doesn't seem to feature guitar much at all. However, the mood of "Fighter" is pure Joseph. Like their biggest hit to date, "White Flag", "Fighter" is all about never giving up. It touches on a more personal level than "White Flag" did, though. "Fighter" is actually a song that almost didn't even come into existence due to personal strife within the band, but Natalie, Allison, and Megan took that tension, made it into a song, and as a result, have landed the biggest new adult alt radio hit of the week! Way to go, girls!
"Heat of the Summer" by Young the Giant: In the mood for a summer song to make a splash on alt and adult alt radio?! Then wait no more! Young the Giant might just have what you're looking for with "Heat of the Summer". The song is actually a clever mix of the traditional fun summer song and the more contemporary type of "summer boredom" song. Lead singer, Sameer Gadhia, expresses his boredom with summer during the verses, which are accompanied by sparse bass sounds, and the richer, guitar laden sounds of the chorus complement its more joyful lyrics quite nicely.
"Rylan" by The National: Who is Rylan? Furthermore, what kind of a NAME is Rylan?! I've heard of (and met) people named Ryan, but adding an "L" into the middle of their names just seems odd. Anyway, as to the question of who Rylan is, it's a bit of a mystery. From the context of the song, he seems to be a neglected, sad child who rarely speaks. Beneath Rylan's quiet lies a troubled boy, as Matt Berninger switches between saying that he "reminds him of everyone" during the first part of the song, to saying that "there's a little bit of hell in everyone" towards the end of it. "Everyone", to Matt Berninger, is flawed in some way. Rylan, therefore, reminds Matt of just how imperfect the human race truly is. The National have often talked about alienation in their music, but rarely at a level that cuts as deep as this one does.
"See You Through My Eyes" by The Head and The Heart: Although The Head and The Heart's previous hit, "Missed Connection", was a significant departure from the folk-rock sound they started out with, it ended up becoming one of the biggest hits of the first half of 2019. We have now arrived at the second half of the year, and The Head and The Heart's move from folk-rock to soft alt-pop still hasn't waned with their latest song, "See You Through My Eyes", which looks poised to become one of the year's biggest hits as well. Musically, it's pretty much the major key version of "Missed Connection". Lyrically, it touches on more positive themes as well, focusing primarily on learning to love yourself.
"Strangers" by City and Colour: If you first found out about City and Colour through their 2009 folk-rock song, "Sleeping Sickness", then you might be in for a surprise to learn that lead singer Dallas Green's previous band was a hard-edged emo band called Alexisonfire. C & C's latest song, "Strangers", seems to be an attempt at combining the sweetness and harmonies of City and Colour with the chord progressions and energy of Alexisonfire. The song has a sound that is both sweet and moody, probably the moodiest that C & C have recorded so far. Its title, "Strangers", gives it an air of mystery to match its moodiness. As for the lyrics ("we are strangers in this land with so much left to discover"), they almost make the song seem vulnerable. Any way you look at it, this song is packed full of emotion!
"Wasted Youth" by Jenny Lewis: According to the YouTube comments on this song, I'm not the only one who thought of Carole King when I first heard this song on my local radio station, KCSN, a few weeks ago. Jenny has emulated quite a few of the women who have helped to shape rock and alternative music, from Joni Mitchell to Patti Smith, but I have not heard her try to take on Carole's style yet. Carole has an almost nostalgic, childlike quality to her music, something that Jenny offers somewhat on the surface, often interspersed with world weary, sarcastic lyrics underneath. There is no sarcasm in "Wasted Youth", though. If anything, the song offers up bittersweet truths that lament her own drug addictions and deaths that have occurred in her family. The song is basically "It's Too Late" for millennials. Something inside has indeed died within Jenny, and she makes no attempts to hide or fake it either!
Wednesday, May 3, 2017
New songs for May 3rd 2017
here they are:
"Canyon" by Joseph: This song has the same sort of wistful, bittersweet vibe as the first two big songs Joseph have released, "White Flag" and "S.O.S. (Overboard)". A major difference is that "Canyon" is not written in D major, but instead in G sharp minor, giving it a bit more of a melancholy sound than their previous two singles. Lyrically, it seems to be about trying to attempt a relationship with someone else who does not want one. I'm noticing a little theme in their songs. "White Flag" symbolizes surrender, and "S.O.S." signifies a call for help. There's probably a number of ways to interpret the title and lyrics of the song "Canyon", but I would venture to say that it is most likely a metaphor for viewing relationships as deep, endless, and hard to fathom, much like canyons are in real life.
"J-Boy" by Phoenix: J-Boy?! What's a J-Boy?! Is it someone who goes on "Sesame Street" to talk about the letter J and carry it around?! Is it a boy whose name begins with the letter J?! Because the song's title isn't mentioned in the lyrics, we may never know the answer to this one. What we do know, however, is that Phoenix, the French indie-pop quartet best known for irresistibly quirky and danceable songs like "1901" and "Lisztomania", have released a new song that shows a bit more cynicism within its lyrical content than they have usually been known to do. "J-Boy" presents itself as a love song, but with lines like "The truth is that we're all to blame. There are lies and moral consequences", "Stealing money from a homeless girl", and "Kamikaze in a hopeless world", it becomes apparent that Thomas Mars might just be weeping for the future of humanity and masking his opinions with a catchy dance-pop sound designed to distract the "casual listener" from its lyrical content.
"The Night We Met" by Lord Huron: This song is now two years old, so why is it just now getting attention? Apparently, this is because the song was just recently featured in the controversial Netflix drama series, "13 Reasons Why". I know pretty much nothing about this series because I'm an old fogey (not really) who is more nostalgic about the shows of the past than those of the present, but "The Night We Met" is the slowest and saddest song I've heard from Lord Huron's "Strange Trails" album. A great number of those songs followed a pattern of going between F sharp minor and A major throughout, as does this one. It is the slow, almost waltz-like pace of "The Night We Met" that sets it apart from the others. The song is probably meant to be a way of expressing nostalgia for a lover that the leader singer knew in his past, but adding it to the soundtrack of "13 Reasons Why" seems to give it a sadder tone given how dark I've heard the series can be.
"Witness" by Benjamin Booker and Mavis Staples: The seamless blending of soul and rock makes Benjamin Booker's latest song, "Witness", sound a bit like a Joe Cocker song, albeit with more of a gospel flavor (perhaps the gospel influence in this song is due to Mavis Staples' presence on it). Mavis has been quite the busy lady this year, having appeared earlier on a notably fiery protest song by Arcade Fire. As for Benjamin, he is relatively new to the music scene in comparison, having released only one other album so far, and that was three years ago. His debut album had a very raw, in-your-face blues-rock sound. "Witness" continues the blues-rock pattern, but with a more soft, melodic flavor to it. It is yet another protest song, probably against the current state of American political affairs, that Mavis Staples has contributed to in 2017. The central point of the song could be summarized in the last lines of the first verse, "When your brother's dying, mother's crying, TV's lying, all the reasons in the world don't mean sh*t to me now!" Ben and Mavis both continue to inject their venomous yet righteous anger throughout this song!
"Canyon" by Joseph: This song has the same sort of wistful, bittersweet vibe as the first two big songs Joseph have released, "White Flag" and "S.O.S. (Overboard)". A major difference is that "Canyon" is not written in D major, but instead in G sharp minor, giving it a bit more of a melancholy sound than their previous two singles. Lyrically, it seems to be about trying to attempt a relationship with someone else who does not want one. I'm noticing a little theme in their songs. "White Flag" symbolizes surrender, and "S.O.S." signifies a call for help. There's probably a number of ways to interpret the title and lyrics of the song "Canyon", but I would venture to say that it is most likely a metaphor for viewing relationships as deep, endless, and hard to fathom, much like canyons are in real life.
"J-Boy" by Phoenix: J-Boy?! What's a J-Boy?! Is it someone who goes on "Sesame Street" to talk about the letter J and carry it around?! Is it a boy whose name begins with the letter J?! Because the song's title isn't mentioned in the lyrics, we may never know the answer to this one. What we do know, however, is that Phoenix, the French indie-pop quartet best known for irresistibly quirky and danceable songs like "1901" and "Lisztomania", have released a new song that shows a bit more cynicism within its lyrical content than they have usually been known to do. "J-Boy" presents itself as a love song, but with lines like "The truth is that we're all to blame. There are lies and moral consequences", "Stealing money from a homeless girl", and "Kamikaze in a hopeless world", it becomes apparent that Thomas Mars might just be weeping for the future of humanity and masking his opinions with a catchy dance-pop sound designed to distract the "casual listener" from its lyrical content.
"The Night We Met" by Lord Huron: This song is now two years old, so why is it just now getting attention? Apparently, this is because the song was just recently featured in the controversial Netflix drama series, "13 Reasons Why". I know pretty much nothing about this series because I'm an old fogey (not really) who is more nostalgic about the shows of the past than those of the present, but "The Night We Met" is the slowest and saddest song I've heard from Lord Huron's "Strange Trails" album. A great number of those songs followed a pattern of going between F sharp minor and A major throughout, as does this one. It is the slow, almost waltz-like pace of "The Night We Met" that sets it apart from the others. The song is probably meant to be a way of expressing nostalgia for a lover that the leader singer knew in his past, but adding it to the soundtrack of "13 Reasons Why" seems to give it a sadder tone given how dark I've heard the series can be.
"Witness" by Benjamin Booker and Mavis Staples: The seamless blending of soul and rock makes Benjamin Booker's latest song, "Witness", sound a bit like a Joe Cocker song, albeit with more of a gospel flavor (perhaps the gospel influence in this song is due to Mavis Staples' presence on it). Mavis has been quite the busy lady this year, having appeared earlier on a notably fiery protest song by Arcade Fire. As for Benjamin, he is relatively new to the music scene in comparison, having released only one other album so far, and that was three years ago. His debut album had a very raw, in-your-face blues-rock sound. "Witness" continues the blues-rock pattern, but with a more soft, melodic flavor to it. It is yet another protest song, probably against the current state of American political affairs, that Mavis Staples has contributed to in 2017. The central point of the song could be summarized in the last lines of the first verse, "When your brother's dying, mother's crying, TV's lying, all the reasons in the world don't mean sh*t to me now!" Ben and Mavis both continue to inject their venomous yet righteous anger throughout this song!
Wednesday, November 2, 2016
New songs for November 2nd, 2015
here they are:
"Katchi" by Nick Waterhouse and Leon Bridges: What happens when a critically acclaimed surf-rock revivalist gets together with a critically acclaimed revivalist of '60s soul music?! You get one heck of a jazzy song, that's what! The "retro" flavor of "Katchi" is further enforced by its vocalized "doo-wop-a-doo-wop, dooby dooby doo-wop" opening. With its rhythmically choppy chords and blazin' hot sax, "Katchi" is pure retro-rockin' bliss! Just one question. What IS "Katchi"?! Nick Waterhouse says that his girl "gives him Katchi all night long" during the chorus but never explains what "Katchi" is. I guess I'll just leave that up to my imagination!!
"Rhythm and Blues" by The Head and The Heart: Since the more-successful-than-usual airplay The Head and The Heart had from their pop-iest song yet, "All We Ever Knew", I was curious nonetheless to find out what other songs on their newest album sounded like. "Library Magic" and "Colors" would not have been bad choices for the second single, but instead its "Rhythm and Blues", which is anything BUT a rhythm and blues song. As a matter of fact, it sounds almost as pop-y as "All We Ever Knew" did, except during its out-of-nowhere electric guitar solo. The song contains the lyrics "stepped on my blue suede shoes, you made Elvis go crazy", except it doesn't sound a THING like Elvis (Costello or Presley). The group's heart may be in the right place, but their head isn't. Oh well, one out of two ain't bad, right?
"S.O.S. (Overboard)" by Joseph: The all-girl indie-folk trio Joseph send an S.O.S. to the world in their second single (and apparently it goes overboard). Much like "Message In A Bottle" from decades before, "S.O.S." is a song that uses nautical metaphors to describe isolation from a loved one. While nowhere near as catchy (or literary) as The Police, Joseph's "S.O.S." is a fun song in its own right. The seaworthy metaphors in Joseph's song show up mostly in the chorus, with lyrics like "screaming underwater" and "alone and overboard".
"Katchi" by Nick Waterhouse and Leon Bridges: What happens when a critically acclaimed surf-rock revivalist gets together with a critically acclaimed revivalist of '60s soul music?! You get one heck of a jazzy song, that's what! The "retro" flavor of "Katchi" is further enforced by its vocalized "doo-wop-a-doo-wop, dooby dooby doo-wop" opening. With its rhythmically choppy chords and blazin' hot sax, "Katchi" is pure retro-rockin' bliss! Just one question. What IS "Katchi"?! Nick Waterhouse says that his girl "gives him Katchi all night long" during the chorus but never explains what "Katchi" is. I guess I'll just leave that up to my imagination!!
"Rhythm and Blues" by The Head and The Heart: Since the more-successful-than-usual airplay The Head and The Heart had from their pop-iest song yet, "All We Ever Knew", I was curious nonetheless to find out what other songs on their newest album sounded like. "Library Magic" and "Colors" would not have been bad choices for the second single, but instead its "Rhythm and Blues", which is anything BUT a rhythm and blues song. As a matter of fact, it sounds almost as pop-y as "All We Ever Knew" did, except during its out-of-nowhere electric guitar solo. The song contains the lyrics "stepped on my blue suede shoes, you made Elvis go crazy", except it doesn't sound a THING like Elvis (Costello or Presley). The group's heart may be in the right place, but their head isn't. Oh well, one out of two ain't bad, right?
"S.O.S. (Overboard)" by Joseph: The all-girl indie-folk trio Joseph send an S.O.S. to the world in their second single (and apparently it goes overboard). Much like "Message In A Bottle" from decades before, "S.O.S." is a song that uses nautical metaphors to describe isolation from a loved one. While nowhere near as catchy (or literary) as The Police, Joseph's "S.O.S." is a fun song in its own right. The seaworthy metaphors in Joseph's song show up mostly in the chorus, with lyrics like "screaming underwater" and "alone and overboard".
Wednesday, June 1, 2016
New songs for the first of June 2016
here they are:
"Let Me Get By" by The Tedeschi-Trucks Band: Once again, we find Susan and Derek experimenting with retro sounds during a modern time. Janis Joplin-esque vocals collide with Allman Brothers-ish guitars and a distinctly early '70s sounding organ to buoy The TTB's latest song, "Let Me Get By" in just the right direction. As the second single from their latest album, "Let Me Get By" bears noticeable distinction from the album's first single, "Anyhow". "Anyhow" was a slow jam that totaled to 6 and a half minutes. "Let Me Get By", on the other hand, is a fast jam that only goes to 4 and a half minutes, about the average length of a rock or alternative song these days. "Anyhow" also seemed like a bittersweet love song, where "Let Me Get By" seems to have the opposite sentiment in mind, as Susan repeatedly states, "get out of my way" during the chorus of "Let Me Get By".
"Oblivius" by The Strokes: Yess, the misspeling uv this songs tidle iz intenshunal. As for the song itself? It appears to be unlike anything The Strokes have ever done before. It sounds a bit like Blondie attempting to cover the funk/disco classic, "Pick Up the Pieces". The Strokes have had danceable songs before, but this seems like it's SPECIFICALLY meant for dancing to at clubs and the like. An interesting move for The Strokes, who started out sounding like how punk rock did before it had a name, with their Velvet Underground and Television influences worn on their sleeve. It appears as though they are now trying to sound more like Talking Heads or Blondie, both of whom were influenced by The Velvets and Television, but took their sound in a new direction.
"White Flag" by Joseph: Joseph?! Joseph who?! Is this a band who omitted the "and the Technicolor Dreamcoat" part out of their name?! No, and it is not a guy named Joseph either. As a matter of fact, it isn't even a guy AT ALL, but a trio of women!! Mixing the icy techno-pop beats of Lorde with the lush harmonies of First Aid Kit, Joseph's debut song, "White Flag", is a very soothing and alluring song that also manages to be somewhat catchy. As you probably expected, this song, like Dido's song of the same title, is about having the willingness to surrender, as that is what a "white flag" is symbolic of in lyric and prose. As Paul Weller from British punk group, The Jam, once said, this song will have you "succumb(ing) to the beat surrender!"
"Let Me Get By" by The Tedeschi-Trucks Band: Once again, we find Susan and Derek experimenting with retro sounds during a modern time. Janis Joplin-esque vocals collide with Allman Brothers-ish guitars and a distinctly early '70s sounding organ to buoy The TTB's latest song, "Let Me Get By" in just the right direction. As the second single from their latest album, "Let Me Get By" bears noticeable distinction from the album's first single, "Anyhow". "Anyhow" was a slow jam that totaled to 6 and a half minutes. "Let Me Get By", on the other hand, is a fast jam that only goes to 4 and a half minutes, about the average length of a rock or alternative song these days. "Anyhow" also seemed like a bittersweet love song, where "Let Me Get By" seems to have the opposite sentiment in mind, as Susan repeatedly states, "get out of my way" during the chorus of "Let Me Get By".
"Oblivius" by The Strokes: Yess, the misspeling uv this songs tidle iz intenshunal. As for the song itself? It appears to be unlike anything The Strokes have ever done before. It sounds a bit like Blondie attempting to cover the funk/disco classic, "Pick Up the Pieces". The Strokes have had danceable songs before, but this seems like it's SPECIFICALLY meant for dancing to at clubs and the like. An interesting move for The Strokes, who started out sounding like how punk rock did before it had a name, with their Velvet Underground and Television influences worn on their sleeve. It appears as though they are now trying to sound more like Talking Heads or Blondie, both of whom were influenced by The Velvets and Television, but took their sound in a new direction.
"White Flag" by Joseph: Joseph?! Joseph who?! Is this a band who omitted the "and the Technicolor Dreamcoat" part out of their name?! No, and it is not a guy named Joseph either. As a matter of fact, it isn't even a guy AT ALL, but a trio of women!! Mixing the icy techno-pop beats of Lorde with the lush harmonies of First Aid Kit, Joseph's debut song, "White Flag", is a very soothing and alluring song that also manages to be somewhat catchy. As you probably expected, this song, like Dido's song of the same title, is about having the willingness to surrender, as that is what a "white flag" is symbolic of in lyric and prose. As Paul Weller from British punk group, The Jam, once said, this song will have you "succumb(ing) to the beat surrender!"
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